One of the BEST cartoons out there today for Gen Y humor is Zits by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman.

Check out these two (so funny…if you have a Gen Y son like I do (Jack, who will soon be 18), you will so appreciate these:

December 23, 2007

November 28, 2007

If you have been reading this blog over the last two months, you know about the young men and women who are currently between the ages of 18-30.  They’re called Generation Y, Millennials, Echo Boomers, and Connecteds. By whatever name, this generation of youth born after 1977 represents more than 70 million consumers in the United States. They earn a total annual income of about $211 billion, spend approximately $172 billion per year** and considerably influence many adult consumer buying choices, so no longer are they the youth that will be seen but not heard — and marketing professionals need to take notice!

Generation Y cannot be reached through traditional marketing channels. Direct mail, print ads, and television advertising bounce off these powerful consumers like bullets on Superman’s chest. They are impermeable to the marketing messages that appealed to their parents and grandparents. Generation Y represents a massive group of influencers — the largest, and the most cutting edge generation in our history. They cut their teeth on technology, grew up with the knowledge they could do anything (because their parents and teachers told them so!), and the desire to make a difference in their world.

So how do you break through this marketing barrier when they can choose their own music without listening to a commercial radio station, can block outsiders from their social circle — which revolves around cell phones and online networks like Facebook and MySpace — and only refer to newspapers when they need packing material to move on to their next venue?

In my work with emerging leaders, I’ve discovered many ways in which marketers have totally missed the mark with Generation Y consumers by not acknowledging their motivators. So let me clue you in to the ways in which you can effectively connect with this growing market of savvy spenders.

1) Respect them as consumers: Members of Generation Y are tech savvy and highly intelligent. Don’t talk “at” or “down to” them.

2) Get to know them. Before they will do business with you, Generation Yers want to know that you care enough to find out what makes them tick. But don’t rely on the old method of marketing surveys. Get out there and talk to them. Find out how they spend their free time, the music they listen to, and what they eat, wear, read, watch, and drive. You might just be surprised by what you learn!

3) Look cool and hip: As Steve Jobs said about his Apple iBook: “I wanted to make the computer look so cool and so attractive that Generation Y would want to lick the screen.” Generation Y will buy based on a sleek, beautiful, cool-looking package. To see what’s working, visit http://Apple.com.

4) Be socially responsible: Generation Y is incredibly conscious about social causes including the environment, animal rights, and world hunger. They want to know that your company is aligned with a cause that creates an emotional connection with them.

5) Be real: Young consumers can spot a phony from a mile away. Don’t try to talk the talk if you don’t speak the language. Be honest and open. Drop the old sales-speak and be sincere when marketing your products and services.

6) Join their networks: Generation Y will not come looking for you. If you want to attract Generation Y, go where they hang out: social networking sites.  MySpace , Facebook, Twitter, Delicious, and Second Life are the hot sites for Generation Y and cost nothing to join. Invest time in reading what they are writing about and getting engaged in an online conversation, and your return will be the knowledge of how to market to them.

7) Take it to the streets: Today’s youth love experiences. Promotional stunts, product sampling, and rollouts in a strategically placed venue attract the young urban buyer. They thrive on word of mouth marketing, and street marketing is one of the best ways to create buzz for the young consumer. Today’s smart marketers use street teams and event marketing to reach Generation Y. For more information visit http://www.streetteampromotion.com and http://www.mryouth.com.

8)Give them a chance to win: Generation Y is wild about winning a contest or receiving a gift, especially if it’s meaningful to them, like an iPod, a trip to a national snowboarding competition, or tickets to a hot concert. And you’ll always be able to reel them in with great java and food. But one caveat: Generation Yers travel in groups so be sure the gift or prize includes enough spending power for them to bring along their friends.

9) Go viral: YouTube turned the Internet from an information highway into an entertainment complex without walls. Video (vodcast) and audio (podcasts) bits uploaded to your site can spread across the Internet as Generation Yers share their favorites with their friends, who pass it along to their circle, and so on.

10) Text them: I hear many older generation leaders saying, “I don’t text message. I don’t even use e-mail.” If you can’t connect with their preferred method of communication (texting over email), forget about reaching Generation Y. Learn how to integrate mobile technology in your marketing efforts to get into their networks and be seen. Look at how popular shows like American Idol use texting to vote for their favorite performers, because the producers recognize that their audience is primarily is Generation Y!

Generation Y is not difficult or complicated. They are truly unique. And these young people are going to be your customers, if only you learn how to reach out to them.

** Harris Interactive 2003 Youth PulseSM Survey, www.harrisinteractive.com

Again…Gen Y just amazes me.  While this is from 2003, these kids from UC Berkeley are amazing, and they take the word acapella to a brand new level with their creative version of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody.  AMAZING!

Click here to watch the video:

As you know, we are always on the look-out for cool Gen Y leaders.

One that has grabbed my attention and warmed my heart is the story of Smooshi and Phil.

Smooshi is a 5-year old female walrus at Marineland in Niagra Falls.  Phil is Phil Demers, age 29, who is her trainer. 

At 18 months of age, Smooshi bonded to Phil as if he was her mother.  The two have made the news, and the story is really incredible and is baffling to animal behaviorists.

To get a dose of inspiration, visit the 2 on MySpace:

http://www.myspace.com/smooshiandphil

Great report by Pew research report on Teens and Social Networking (Dec. 19, 2007)

Sent today from Executive and Entrepreneur Coach, Tara Kachaturoff  

Thanks Tara.

Y-Talk Radio opened today with host Roger Dewitt.  Great job Roger!

Check out the Y-Talk podcast and hear the interview with Duke University, Sophomore, Ann Fields on How to Get Into Duke:

Quicken announces..

Starting in early January, Intuit is offering Quicken personal financial software on the iPhone.

FYI. I work at Intuit, makers of Quicken..

Article here.

I grew up saying ‘I want my MAPPO’ (Oatmeal) and then started saying ‘Want my MTV!’.  Today, Gen Y is saying ‘I want my M-Commerce.’ Yes, these guys and gals are shopping off their cell phones. Sometimes even hitting their cell phone key pad behind their back. They do a search and find on their phones… and it is interesting to note that the iPhone now is responsible for over 1% of overall web traffic. One thing that is a bit different is that they leverage social networks while they surf and shop off their phone. Ironically, there are many companies – retailers, etailers, etc. – that are not ready for this.

And it’s not only a retailing issue, but also an online banking issue too.  Last May, Celentreported that mobile banking will impact  35% of U.S. households with banking accounts using mobile phones by 2010. Right now, Mobile banking is being used by less than 1% of the US population. Hard to imagine that 2010 is just 2 years away.

• VeriSign And Visa Team Up For Mobile Banking
• Citibank Gets Into Mobile Banking - Citi Mobile Gives You Account Access On Your Phone 

I am a huge Penelope Trunk fan (I read her blog daily).  She has a great blog entry today about doing what you love and how this is really not all that it’s cracked up to be (I just had this conversation with my daughter, Ann last night).

Trunk opens her blog by saying “One of the worst pieces of career advice that I bet each of you has not only gotten but given is to “do what you love.”  She goes on to say that the important goal is to try on new stuff (HERE! HERE!)

What I have found in my 40 plus years of life is that often when you take what you love and earn money for it, you begin to lose the love affair you had with that passion.   As an example, writing and publishing a book.  I love research, and I love to write, but the love affair starts becoming more like a rocky marriage once you move into publishing, contracts, royalties and people who don’t do what they said they were going to do (another topic all together).

 The thing you love often becomes labor, and I don’t really mean a labor of love, so it is really important to keep things in perspective.  If you are in love with a beautiful cabin in the woods on the lake, and you love writing music but will starve as a musician, maybe it’s time to look at a job that can bring you income to afford that great space in the woods (and stay focused on that).  There’s always time in the evening and week-ends to write music.  I have also found that there are moments in everyone’s work day that can bring fun and joy…just like life, not every minute of the day is fun and joyous, and I am still not convinced that we would know happiness and joy if we did not experience pain, boredom and dread. 

So…just check out this blog post…it is really great stuff!

By Bea Fields: Millennial Leaders

 The Young and the Restless by Zach Patton

There are proven ways to recruit and retain the emerging generation. Most states and localities don’t seem to know about them.

By ZACH PATTON

Two years ago, the American workforce passed a major milestone. A majority of the nation’s workers now come from Generation X, born between 1965 and 1977, or Generation Y, born between 1978 and 1990. This shouldn’t come as a shock to many people — baby boomers can’t stay on the job forever — but for many, it takes some getting used to. Nevertheless, it’s reality.

Except in state and local government. There, it’s a very different scene. The average age of local managers has actually risen dramatically over the past several years. In 1971, 45 percent of local government managers were in their thirties, according to the International City/County Management Association. By 2000, only 16 percent were. Thirty-five years ago, 26 percent of managers were under 30, but by the turn of this century, only 2 percent were. The story at the state level is similar.

Read the full article here.